The effect of construction activity on SPA waterfowl: a case study of the Abberton Reservoir Enhancement Scheme

• Main Author: Wallis, Kim Rachel
• Other Authors: Thompson, Stewart
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Brookes University 2017
• Subjects: Olor; Shoveler
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.24384/dr0f-qw66; https://radar.brookes.ac.uk/radar/file/d5c21dd4-27f2-4fe3-aca2-11a0ce95a760/1/fulltext.pdf; https://radar.brookes.ac.uk/radar/file/d5c21dd4-27f2-4fe3-aca2-11a0ce95a760/1/appendices.pdf

Abberton Reservoir Essex, covering 4.85km2, is a water storage reservoir and is designated a Ramsar site, Special Protection Area (SPA) and Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). In order to meet predicted increases in water demand, large scale construction works to raise the water level of the Main Section and consequently increase the storage capacity, were undertaken between 2010 and 2013. Construction work primarily involved breaking out 12km (7.4 miles) of concrete apron and perimeter road, raising the main dam by 3.2m and extensive shoreline re-profiling. This provided a unique and valuable opportunity to explore the effects of disturbance associated with construction activity on the spatial distribution of waterfowl. Nine species, all SPA interest features, were chosen as a basis for this study, the dabblers Anas strepera (Gadwall), A. clypeata (Shoveler), A. crecca (Teal) and A. penelope (Wigeon), divers Aythya fuligula (Tufted Duck), A. ferina (Pochard) and Fulica atra (Coot), the herbivorous Cygnus olor (Mute Swan) and the piscivorous Podicepts cristatus (Great Crested Grebe). As a consequence of both the reservoir’s importance to waterfowl and planning regulations, extensive waterfowl surveys were undertaken pre-construction and used to assess and predict the potential impacts arising from construction activity. Findings were used in the overall consideration of the development, with analysis determining appropriate mitigation measures which were subsequently incorporated into project design to ensure there would be no adverse impacts upon the integrity of the site. Waterfowl surveys continued throughout the four year construction period (2010 – 2013) and together with four years of pre-construction survey data (2006 – 2009), were used to make comparisons between the two periods. The spatial and temporal distribution analysis formed the first part of this research and provided a baseline from which to assess the effects of disturbance. The second part used a novel approach to assess the extent ...